The Society of Typographic Aficionados is pleased to announce that designer Louise Fili and executive director of the Type Directors Club Carol Wahler have both been honored with the 2018 SOTA Typography Award. The presentation took place on Saturday, August 4th, 2018, at the Hilton Portland Downtown as a part of TypeCon2018.

About Louise Fili

Louise Fili is founder of Louise Fili Ltd and was formerly senior designer for Herb Lubalin, and art director of Pantheon Books from 1978 to 1989, where she designed close to 2,000 book jackets. She has received Gold and Silver Medals from the Society of Illustrators and the New York Art Director’s Club, the Premio Grafico from the Bologna Book Fair, and three James Beard award nominations. Fili has taught and lectured extensively, and her work is in the permanent collections of the Library of Congress, the Cooper Hewitt Museum, and the Bibliothèque Nationale.

She is co-author, with Steven Heller, of Italian Art Deco, British Modern, Dutch Moderne, Streamline, French Modern, Deco España, German Modern, Design Connoisseur, Typology, Stylepedia, Euro Deco, Scripts, Shadow Type, Stencil Type, and Slab Serif Type. Fili has also written Elegantissima, Grafica della Strada, Graphique de la Rue, Gràfica de les Rambles, The Cognoscenti’s Guide to Florence, and Italianissimo. A member of the Art Directors Hall of Fame, she has received the medal for Lifetime Achievement from the AIGA and the Type Directors Club.

About Carol Wahler

Carol Wahler has been Executive Director with the Type Directors Club since 1983. Carol has a significant background in type, starting with her family’s Ludlow typesetting business in the 1950s. During her tenure with the TDC, the membership has more than tripled. She has performed as editor of the TDC Letterspace newsletter and has been integrally involved in other committees, including the annual type design competition and traveling exhibits. As a lecturer, Carol continually brings the story and history of the TDC to universities and schools around the globe.

Prior to her current position, Carol raised two children and graduated Magna Cum Laud from William Paterson University, where she received a B.A. in Art History. She has four grandchildren and lives in Westport, Connecticut with her husband Allan.

Don’t miss swinging through the SOTA Marketplace on Friday, August 3rd. That’s when Portland’s design powerhouse Aaron James Draplin will be dropping a reportedly “robust” DDC merch table at TypeCon2018.

The Type Crit takes place Sunday, August 5th from 2:00 pm to 3:45 pm in the Forum Suite on the third floor of the Hilton Portland Downtown.

Type Crit Participation Guidelines

If you are interesting in participating in this year’s Type Crit, please review the following guidelines. A sign-up sheet will be available in the SOTA Marketplace until Sunday morning.

There are ten time slots available. Each critique will last approximately 10 minutes.

Each typeface presented should be limited to one weight and style. No typeface families will be considered, due to time constraints.

At least four printouts of proofs should be brought to the session. No laptop computers will be allowed for presentations. Hard copy only. Text faces should show actual text set at an appropriate range of sizes.

Cameras and recording devices are welcome, but spectators won’t be guaranteed an advantageous place for viewing, so please arrive on time if you desire a good vantage point.

The posters include rare circus and entertainment advertisements made from hand-carved wood blocks that date from the 1930s to the 1950s. The collection was acquired in 2016 from the Enquirer Printing Company in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Live printing demonstrations using some of these original blocks will take place during the conference in the Adobe Typekit space.

Prints will be available as souvenirs for TypeCon attendees.

]]>http://www.typecon.com/archives/6830/feed2Food! Frivolity! Fonts!http://www.typecon.com/archives/6803
http://www.typecon.com/archives/6803#respondMon, 16 Jul 2018 19:56:27 +0000http://www.typecon.com/?p=6803Only two weeks to go until TypeCon2018 starts up in Stumptown … and there’s still time to register and get in on all the font-fuelled fun.

SOTA’s Night of Type

On Saturday, August 4th, conference attendees will be treated to an incredible evening celebrating TypeCon’s 20th anniversary, sponsored by MyFonts.

Festivities will include the first ever TypeCon Font Family Feud, hosted by the convivial Allan Haley and Rachel Elnar. Sit back and enjoy this lighthearted typographic game show or sign up and join a team to compete for some spectacular prizes.

Get in on the action ahead of time by contributing answers that will be used during the game. Survey says …

In addition to Font Family Feud, join us for the SOTA Typography Award ceremony, grab a snapshot with your type idol in the Extensis photo booth, partake in the open bar, and dive into a selection of yummy desserts!

And don’t forgot to drink early and bid often during the annual SOTA Silent Auction, featuring everything from rare type ephemera to hand printed posters to choice typographic tchotchkes.

]]>http://www.typecon.com/archives/6803/feed0Special Presentation: Jessica Hischehttp://www.typecon.com/archives/6769
http://www.typecon.com/archives/6769#respondTue, 10 Jul 2018 18:53:25 +0000http://www.typecon.com/?p=6769On Friday, August 3rd, Jessica Hische will premiere the animated trailer for her upcoming children’s book — Tomorrow I’ll be Brave — as part of the TypeCon2018 program. The trailer is a collaboration with the Portland based animation studio Oddfellows. Together, they’ll present a brief overview of the creation process and then show the finished piece for the very first time.

About Jessica Hische

Jessica Hische is a lettering artist and author living in Oakland, California. She’s had the pleasure of working for some pretty crazy clients over the years (like Wes Anderson, Starbucks, Fender Guitars, and the US Postal Service), and spends a little too much time “procrastiworking” on personal projects. She and her work have been featured in numerous design, illustration, type, and web publications, including Communication Arts, Print Magazine, Novum, Graphis, and Eye Magazine. She was named a Forbes 30 under 30, a Print “New Visual Artist”, an ADC Young Gun, and in 2018 was listed as one of Adweek’s “Creative 100”. Her first children’s book, Tomorrow I’ll be Brave, will be published in October 2018 through Penguin Workshop.

]]>http://www.typecon.com/archives/6769/feed0Advance Pricing Extended Through July 6thhttp://www.typecon.com/archives/6753
http://www.typecon.com/archives/6753#respondMon, 02 Jul 2018 18:01:05 +0000http://www.typecon.com/?p=6753TypeCon already provides a lot of bang for your typographic buck, but we wanted to give you one last chance to save. Specifically, advance registration pricing has been extended through Friday, July 6th.

And while you’re registering for the main conference, don’t forget to check out the amazing workshops being offered this year — but hurry, they’re filling up fast.

We’ve been putting the finishing touches on this year’s conference program and are very excited to share what to expect this summer in Portland. From August 1st through 5th, some of the most influential names in type and design will be hanging out in Stumptown.

Along with a jam-packed main program, other events include the Type & Design Education Forum, a quartet of special presentations by Gemma O’Brien, Louise Fili, Nina Stössinger, and Lauren Hom, the popular Type Quiz, the SOTA Silent Auction, drinks and noshes at the SOTA Spacebar, several international type exhibitions, plus the Type Crit featuring the typographic elucidations of Matthew Carter, John Downer, and Jill Pichotta. Workshops, presentations, panel discussions, networking events, tours, and other social gatherings will round out nearly a week’s worth of typographic adventures and inspiration.

About Gemma O’Brien

O’Brien is an Australian artist specializing in lettering, illustration, and typography. Her expressive calligraphy and detailed designs can be seen in advertising campaigns, editorial publications, and large-scale murals around the world. She has collaborated with numerous global brands and publications including Apple, Adobe, and The New York Times. Beyond her commercial work, she is a regular speaker at international conferences and also hosts lettering workshops at design schools, agencies, and events. A number of her projects have received the Award of Typographic Excellence from the New York Type Directors Club, in 2015 she was recognized as an ADC Young Gun, and in 2016 named one of Print Magazine’s New Visual Artists: 15 under 30.

]]>http://www.typecon.com/archives/6491/feed1Frida Medrano Named Winner of 2018 Catalyst Awardhttp://www.typecon.com/archives/6450
http://www.typecon.com/archives/6450#respondTue, 22 May 2018 22:56:35 +0000http://www.typecon.com/?p=6450The Society of Typographic Aficionados has announced that Frida Medrano of Nuevo León, México will be the recipient of the 2018 SOTA Catalyst Award. Created in 2010, the award recognizes a person 25 years of age or younger who demonstrates significant achievement and future promise in the field of typography.

Frida will present her work and receive the award certificate at TypeCon2018, taking place this summer in Portland, Oregon.

About The Winner

Frida Medrano, 23
Nuevo León, México

Frida Medrano studied graphic design at Universidad de Monterrey in México. Her journey in type design began with a school assignment that produced “Kalnia”, her first typeface. When variable fonts emerged, in order to explore the technical part of the process, she designed “Jabin” a variable font with two axes that control the weight and swash of the blackletter. With this project, she participated in Tipografía México 2017, a type design conference that analyzed the variable font format.

She worked as branding designer in Anagrama making custom logotypes, and with a web design background, her main goal is to combine technology with typography to explore different design perspectives for branding and web. She currently collaborates with TypeMade, works as a digital designer, tries to finish her own type design projects and in her free time, she likes to read and watch a lot of movies and series.

A panel of judges comprised of notable and experienced professionals selected Medrano from among numerous talented and brilliant young creative people from all over the world. Following are comments from some of the judges concerning her entry:

“I’m always drawn to people with overlaps, people that approach creation with a sense of play and curiosity, and those not afraid to forge new hybrid ground.”

“Medrano exhibits care and attention to the various parts of the typographic process: from concept, through type design, to problem solving in manufacturing, to the final layout and design.”

“I appreciated her approach to type as a system, rather than just an alphabet.”

“Frida has definitely demonstrated determination and inherent drive to truly understand the universe of typography, and chances are, she will be someone to keeps tabs on in the future as she continues to progress.”

SOTA wishes to express a sincere “thank you” to the judges for their contribution to the 2018 Catalyst Award. SOTA also wishes to thank everyone who entered the competition and encourages their continued efforts and interests in letterforms.